ROAD SAFETY PROTESTS

9 students released as 42 secure bail

Relatives and fellows rejoice on CMM court premises in Dhaka after students, arrested on charge of spreading rumours about the recent student protests against road sector anarchy, were released on bail on Sunday. — Indrajit Kumer Ghosh

Nine private university students were released from jail as 42 students, including the 9, detained in cases filed for incidents during the recent student protests for road safety that began on July 29, secured bail on Sunday.BRAC University students Aklas, Reza and Rifat, American International University of Bangladesh student Jamil Ahmed, North South University student Mehdi Hasan, East West University student Mujahidur Rahman, South East University student Simanta Sarker and Ikhtiar Rahman and Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology student Iftekhar Ahmed walked out of the Dhaka Central Jail at Keraniganj at about 7:30pm, said jailor Zahidul Alam.Of the 42 students, 12 got bail in a case filed with Badda police station, nine in a case filed with Dhandmondi police station, two in a case filed with Uttara police station, one in a case filed with Shahbagh police station, three in a in a case filed with New Market police station, five in a case filed with Bhatara police station, three in a case filed with Uttara East police station, one in a case filed with Paltan police station and three in a case filed with Kotwali police station, court custody in-charge sub-inspector Motaleb Hossain said.The students included Mashad Mortuza Bin Ahad, Sakhawat Hossain Nizhum, Shihad Shahriar, Azizul Karim Antor, Mahedi Hasan and Foyez Ahmed Adnan, arrested in the Bhatara police station case, and Noor Mohammad, Jahidul Haque, Iftekhar Ahmed, Mohammad Hasan, Redwan Ahmed, Tariqul Islam, AHM Khaled Reza, Reza Rifat Akhlaq, Rashedul Islam, and Mushfiqur Rahman, arrested in the Badda police station case.Dhaka metropolitan magistrate AKM Moinuddin Siddiqi granted bail to 15 students while chief metropolitan magistrate Saifuzzaman Hero granted bail to Iftekhar Ahmed after hearing their petitions for bail.Twenty-two students of seven private universities were arrested in two cases filed with Badda and Bhatara police stations on the ninth day of the road safety protests on August 6.Later, they were denied bail.Protests flared across Bangladesh on 29 July when two higher secondary students were killed by a bus that, racing with two others, ploughed through crowd of students and others waiting for transport at Kurmitola in Dhgaka.At least 100 people, mostly students, were arrested in at least 52 cases filed between July 29 and August 15 with different police stations accusing over 5,000 unnamed people of violence following attacks on protesters for road safety reportedly by the ruling Awami League and its front body activists.Dhaka Metropolitan Police said that at least 81 people were arrested in 43 cases filed under the Penal Code and Special Powers Act between July 29 and August 11 while 16 individuals were arrested under eight cases filed under Section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology Act.According to the metropolitan police, 14 more cases were filed with Ramna police division and 31 were arrested in those cases. Of the cases under Ramna division, one was filed against 250 unnamed people with Dhanmondi police station while two were filed against 750 people.In Gulshan, the police registered nine cases against 31 named and 2,450 unnamed people while 26 people, including the 22 students of private universities, were arrested. At Mirpur police division, police registered a case against 600 students and teachers of Bangladesh University of Business Technology and Commerce College while five cases were filed with Kafrul police station against at least 150 people.At Uttara, four cases were filed against 113 named and 150 unnamed people on charge of damaging vehicles during the protests. Three people were arrested. At Tejgaon, police officials registered two cases against six people. Eight people, including two named in the first information report, were arrested. At Wari division, two cases were filed against 450 people on charge of damaging two police vehicles and assaulting a cop. One was arrested.At Motijheel, police registered six cases and arrested 10 individuals. The police arrested one in a case filed in Lalbagh division against 60 unnamed people. The metropolitan police so far accused 29 people in eight cases under the Information and Communication Technology Act and arrested 16 people, including acclaimed photographers Shahidul Alam. On August 2, cyber crime unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police prosecuted 28 social media and online news outlets under the Section 57 of the Information and Communication Technology Act on allegation of instigating students during the protests for road safety.On August 4 and 5, the city saw assaults on students, from schools and colleges, staging protests and checking licence and registration of vehicles.Some 20 journalists, particularly photographers and videographers, were beaten up for documenting the attacks, according to media reports. While some attackers wore helmets, the journalists identified some of their attackers to be Awami League youth members.